CHILDREN’S HOPE: CULTIVATING SUCCESSFUL HOMELESS CHILDREN

Abstract

There are approximately 2.5 million youth in the United States who experience homelessness annually, placing them at risk for social, behavioral, and academic challenges (American Institute of Research, 2009; Covenant House, 2016; Project Home, 2018). Promoting the academic success of homeless youth is critical to supporting student’s healthy development and their ability to contribute to the global economy. It is the legal and ethical duty of school counselors and all educational leaders to provide academic access as well as supports to promote the success of all students, including homeless youth. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to discuss the following: (a) background information regarding homeless youth and how their experiences can interact with their academic progression, (b) the benefits of complying with the ethical and legal duty of educators to advocate and support homeless children and families, (c) how educators and/or school counselors can help promote the success of homeless children. Homeless children are at-promise (i.e., at-risk) youth who experience situations that can affect their academic growth, career transitions, mental health, and physiological development. Homeless children have a higher propensity than their counterparts (children who are not homeless) to experience adversity and trauma (e.g., abuse, bullying, stigma, hate crime, academic failure). They are highly susceptible to risks, such as street violence, sexual harassment, substance abuse, school delinquency, imprisonment, and sex trafficking (Bassuk, E., Richard, M., Tsersvadze, A., 2015; Sisselman-Borgia, Budescu, & Torino, 2018; Stone, 2007; Tyler & Johnson, 2006). Each year, approximately 20,000 runaways in America are forced into human trafficking (Covenant House, 2016). Homeless children exhibit a high need for support, however, they are less inclined to have support systems (i.e., social supports, resources) and advocates to assist with their development and growth (Allensworth, 2014; Covenant House, 2016; Stone, 2007). There are approximately 2.5 million homeless children in the United States that are identified on an annual basis (American Institute of Research, 2009; Covenant House, 2016; Project Home, 2018). Forty percent of homeless people are under the age of 18, and 29.4 million children under the age of 18 are classified as poor (i.e., family SES 200% below the federal poverty threshold (American Institute of Research, 2009; Covenant House, 2016). Researchers have introduced interventions for working with homeless children, however the effectiveness of resiliency intervention programs within educational institutions were minimal (Masten, Fiat, Labella, & Strack, 2015; Van der Ploeg, J., & Scholte, E., 1997). Quantitative studies conducted with homeless youth illustrate correlations between mobility, income, attendance, and academic achievement (Altena, Brilleslijper-Kater, & Wolf, 2010; Bassuk, E., Richard, M., Tsersvadze, A., 2015). However, there is a limited amount of qualitative (i.e., grounded theory) studies that focus on how the interactive cultures of homeless children leads to their resilience and success. There is also a gap in the literature as it pertains to examining resiliency and skill building interventions that directly influence the success (i.e., academic performance, quality of life) of homeless youth (Altena, Brilleslijper-Kater, & Wolf, 2010; Miller, 2011; Rew, 2008). Therefore, the purpose of this manuscript is to discuss the following: (a) background information regarding homeless youth and how their experiences can interact with their academic progression, (b) the benefits of complying with the ethical and legal duty of educators to advocate and support homeless children and families, (c) how educators and/or school counselors can help promote the success of homeless children.